"Bones" and "Rizzoli & Isles" are the Same Show

"Rizzoli & Isles" and "Bones"

(Again with the spoilers)

...I got a little confused earlier this week when I finished reading several of Tess Gerritsen's novels. Gerritsen is the author of the Rizzoli and Isles thrillers, and last summer TNT premiered a show of the same name that was loosely based on her books. I watched the show when it was on the air, and when I stumbled across Gerritsen's books in the library I decided to try them. There was only one problem...as I read I continually tried to compare the books to the television version of "Rizzoli and Isles", and I kept on getting images from "Bones" stuck in my head.

Obviously, I'd expect "Rizzoli and Isles" to be very different from the thrillers that it's based on. When I first started watching "Bones", based on the novels by Kathy Reichs, I had already read all of her books. There were very few similiarities, but I wasn't bothered. Books are books, and television is television.

But what bothers me about "Rizzoli and Isles" and "Bones" is that the two shows are shockingly similar.

Lets list the ways:

*Rizzoli is a hot-headed detective. She's knowledgeable about guns/bad guys. So is Booth.












*Isles is an attractive woman who is awkward in social situations. She works with dead bodies. Brennan does both of these things.







*They all go by their last names most of the time.

*Their relationships with each other are the heart of the show. Audiences want Booth and Brennan to end up together. And many viewers see an attraction between Rizzoli and Isles as well. In fact in the episode "I Kissed a Girl" the producers played with this idea, pleasing many fans by having Rizzoli and Isles mimic a lesbian relationship. In fact, if you search "Rizzoli and Isles" on Youtube all you'll find is videos that are edited to show a lesbian "relationship".

*Oh, and let's not get distracted by the fact that the cases are a bit too similar. Charles Hoyt is the serial killer in "Rizzoli and Isles", and he keeps going after single women. Howard Epps is the serial killer in "Bones" and he, you guessed it, also goes after single women (in his case teenage girls). Both of these men are sexually perverse. And both have bizarre relationships with the women trying to hunt them. Hoyt attacks Rizzoli and becomes obsessed with her, while Epps becomes immersed in the idea of beating Bones at a mind game.

Many of my friends who love "Bones" also thought that "Rizzoli and Isles" was a great show. I can understand why they watch both. It's like getting two doses of the same (pretty good) thing in the same week.

Want to know when 'Bones' Season 7 is premiering? Click HERE. 
And click HERE to find out when the second half of 'Rizzoli & Isles' Season 2 will air.